TNAG-1539-FCO40-2103-Hong-Kong-Vietnamese-refugees-ex-China-cases-1986 — Page 3

ZCZC

AL...

HMLNAN 2098

INDE

RESTRICTED

TT MANIL

IT FCOLN

TT GEMISL

FM HOKON TO MANIL

22084OZ SEP

GRS 340

RESTRICTED

FM HONG KONG

TO TELELETTER MANILA

HVK 843/102

29 SEP 1986

TELELETTER SRD 401/1/C XIX

OF 22084OZ SEPTEMBER 86

INFO TELELETTER FCO, UKMIS GENEVA

FROM:

LIBY

faken

22/0924

Cal Jakom

K. WOODHOUSE, HONG KONG

ESQ. MANILA

FOLLOWING FOR: N.A. THORNE, COPIED TO:

C. LEEKS, ESQ. HKD.FCO

D. WALKER, ESQ., UKMIS GENEVA

निकु

YOUR TELNO-PEFT 243/1 OF 16 JULY: UNHCR: VIETNAMESE REFUGEES

¿

23

THANK YOU FOR THE INFORMATION IN YOUR TLUR WHICH AWAITED MY RETURN FROM LEAVE.

2. AS YOU ARE PROBABLY AWARE, THE NUMBER OF BOATS ELECTING TO CONTINUE THEIR JOURNEY FROM HONG KONG HAS REDUCED CONSIDERABLY FROM THE 27 WITH 1,736 PEOPLE ON BOARD WHO LEFT LAST YEAR. SO FAR THIS YEAR WE HAVE HAD SEVEN BOATS LEAVING WITH 153 ON BOARD. WE ARE CONTINUING TO LIAISE WITH OUR CONTACTS IN THE PRC AND TO SHARE ANY INTELLIGENCE WE OBTAIN ON LARGE GROUPS OF VIETNAMESE CONGREGATING IN COASTAL COMMUNITIES. THIS SEEMS TO BE PROVING EFFECTIVE.

3. YOU ARE AWARE OF OUR CONCEPN ABOUT MERCY SHIPS, WHICH WE THINK IS SHARED BY AN INCREASING NUMBER OF THOSE DEALING WITH REFUGEES. WE ARE ENCOURAGED BY EFFORTS IN EUROPE TO SPELL OUT CLEARLY THE IMPLICATIONS OF THE WORK OF THESE MERCY SHIPS.

4. BELATEDLY, I AGPEE COMPLETELY WITH YOUR COMMENT AND PROPOSED ACTION ABOUT PUTTING THE PHILIPPINE AUTHORITIES ON THE SPOT. ALTHOUGH THEY HAVE NOT DONE EVERYTHING THAT WE MIGHT HAVE WANTED, THE FILIPINOS HAVE STUCK BY PALAWAN AND, PARTICULARLY THE RPC AT BATAAN. AS SUCH, THEY HAVE PROVIDED A REGIONAL FACILITY WHICH HAS BENEFITTED US AND OTHER PLACES OF FIRST ASYLUM. I WAS TOLD THAT THE RPC AT GALANG WOULD BE CLOSING DOWN AT THE END OF THIS YEAR, THEREBY LEAVING BATAAN AS THE ONLY RPC. AS YOU POINTED OUT, THIS IS NOT REPEAT NOT SOMETHING THAT WE SHOULD LIGHTLY ENDANGER.

5. WHEN I WAS IN MANILA EARLIER THIE YEAR, THE UNHCR WAS STRUGGLING WITH THE PROBLEM OF REFUGEES WHO HAD REFUSED RESETTLEMENT IN ONE COUNTRY, PREFERRING TO GO TO ANOTHER (I THINK THAT FRANCE WAS REFUSED IN PREFERENCE TO THE US). I WOULD WELCOME ANY INFORMATION ON HOW THIS DILEMMA WAS HANDLED BY THE UNHCR. IT HAS SUGGESTED THAT WE MIGHT COERCE REFUGEES HERE TO ACCEPT LOCAL RESETTLEMENT AND WOULD BE INTERESTED TO LEARN WHETHER IT HAS FOLLOWED THIS LINE IN THE PHILIPPINES.

6. THINGS SOUND AS IF THEY MIGHT BE A LITTLE DULLER WITH BEYER'S DEPARTURE CERTAINLY QUIETER. SORRY FOR THE DELAY IN REPLYING.

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SIGNED: K.J. WOODHOUSE

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